Exercise riders at Churchill Downs honor Callie Witt

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – Fellow training riders at Churchill Downs honored and remembered 20-yr-old Callie Witt, the exercise rider who died right after becoming thrown from a horse at Keeneland past Friday.

The tragic accident happened Friday early morning on Keeneland’s instruction monitor, exactly where Witt was thrown into the air from a two-yr-aged unraced horse who grew to become spooked. Witt died soon afterwards, in accordance to Keeneland officials.

On Thursday early morning, training trainers at Churchill Downs wore white armbands symbolizing their remembrance of Witt.

Witt was from Nebraska, and examined at Bluegrass Local community and Specialized School.

Riders have been recognized wearing the armbands by WAVE News during Sunrise at the Downs protection on Thursday.

“It’s just a challenging scenario, but the exercise riders out below wished to honor her,” WAVE Information anchor Connie Leonard explained.

“There are so a lot of,” WAVE Sporting activities contributor Jody Demling claimed. “That’s the tough aspect. There are so numerous. I feel this is some thing that has started off. And it’s some thing that will expand as the months go on.”

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Keeneland officials mentioned Witt wanted to be a jockey. She started as an intern at Keeneland right before moving into a full-time exercise rider.

Witt had been working for physical exercise coach Joe Sharp. Sharp’s wife, Rosie Napravnik, spoke with WAVE News on Wednesday about Witt’s loss of life.

“We’re all listed here with accepting the point that this is how perilous this activity is,” Napravnik explained. “There’s seriously no phrases to express how tragic this loss is, but the only factor that we as a barn, as Joe’s barn, were able to get absent from it was that Callie — this was all she needed to do.”

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